Solar streets may sound like something from a sci-fi movie – but hold your breath – as they’re soon becoming a reality. By 2020, France intends to install 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) of solar roadway using Colas’ Wattway solar pavement.
Created over five years in collaboration between Colas, a transport infrastructure company, and the INES (French National Institute for Solar Energy) – Wattway produces electrical energy using existing roadways.
With no infrastructure overhaul required – the panels can be applied directly on the current roads. The composite material is just a few millimeters thick and is composed of cells inserted in superposed layers that ensure resistance and tire grip.
The roads paved with Wattway panels will be rainproof and will last for up to at least 10 years depending on the traffic. According to Colas, tests have shown that the panels can bear one million truck tire passes without damage.
As far as benefits of this renewable energy –
- A one kilometer stretch of Wattway paved road can power street lights for a city of 5,000 inhabitants (ADEME).
- Four linear meters of roads, with 1,000 sun-hours/year, can provide power to an average French household nearby (ADEME/CEREN 2014).
- By charging stationary electric vehicles via induction, 100 meters of Wattway panels can provide enough power for an electric car to travel 100,000 kilometers (INES).
Looks like the future is here!